Theater

White is a Brooklyn, New York native who made her Broadway debut in Barnum in 1981.^[1] She understudied the role of Effie in the original 1981 production of Dreamgirls and played the part in the 1987 revival, for which she won the Drama League Award for Best Actress in a Musical.^[2]

One of her first professional jobs was playing Dorothy in a national tour of The Wiz. ^[3] White has also appeared on Broadway as Grizabella in Cats, Asaka in Once on This Island, Miss Jones in How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying, Matron "Mama" Morton in Chicago, as well as appearing in Carrie and Fela!. For her role in Cy Coleman's The Life, she won the Tony, Drama Desk, and Outer Critics Circle Awards for her portrayal of a world-weary, no-nonsense, streetwise hooker named Sonja.^[4] Off-Broadway White has performed in the Public Theater production of the William Finn musical Romance in Hard Times (1989),^[5] for which she won the Obie Award, Dinah Was (1998) at the Gramercy Theatre as singer Dinah Washington,^[6] and the Second Stage Theatre production of Regina Taylor's musical Crowns (2002), for which she and the cast won the AUDELCO Award, Outstanding Ensemble Performance.^[7] In 2014, White appeared Off-Broadway in the Primary Stages production of the play While I Yet Live by Billy Porter.^[8] In 2015, White starred with Scott Wakefield Off-Broadway in the York Theatre Company's World premiere of Alan Govenar's musical Texas in Paris.^[9]

White, André De Shields, Stefanie Powers, and Georgia Engel appeared in the new musical Gotta Dance, directed and choreographed by Jerry Mitchell, which began performances on December 13, 2015, at Chicago's Bank of America Theatre, and ran through January 17, 2016.^[10][11][12]

In August 2022, it was announced that White would play the role of Hermes in the Broadway musical Hadestown beginning on September 13, 2022. She was the first woman to play the role.^[13] Her final performance was on 17 March 2024.^[14]

Concerts and cabaret

White's concert performances to benefit the Actors' Fund of America include Dreamgirls in 2001,^[20] Funny Girl in 2002,^[21] and Hair in 2004.^[22] She performed in the concert version of South Pacific, which was broadcast by PBS Great Performances in 2006.^[23] She performed with the Brooklyn Philharmonic in a concert of works by Leonard Bernstein, Aaron Copland, and George and Ira Gershwin celebrating the orchestra's 50th anniversary in July 2003.^[24] She also has appeared in concert at Carnegie Hall, in March 2004, singing Harold Arlen songs with the New York Pops.^[25] White performed her one-woman show at the Kennedy Center's "Barbara Cook's Spotlight" in November 2007, singing songs by Cy Coleman.^[26] At the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts at Lincoln Center she performed in a concert, Broadway's Future Songbook, in September 2014.^[27] She has toured with her one-woman cabaret show From Brooklyn to Broadway, which she first presented in March 2000 at Arci's Place in New York City.^[28] She performed the show in San Francisco in 2003 at the Plush Room.^[29] Lilias has also performed at The Purple Room in Palm Springs, California. ^[30]

She is heard on the 1990 Madonna recording "Rescue Me".^{[citation needed]}

Television and film

White's television appearances include a regular role on Sesame Street, Law & Order, Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, and NYPD Blue. Her screen credits include voiceover work in Disney's Hercules and Anastasia and appearances in How the Grinch Stole Christmas, Game 6, Pieces of April and Then She Found Me.^[31]

Film

Television

Video games